Serious Performance Ultra Buffing Towel

What Is It?

Ultra Buffing Towel from Serious Performance

What Does It Bring to the Table?

The Serious Performance Ultra Buffing Towel is an excellent high quality dual
sided microfibre towel. The short pile side makes buffing waxes and sealants
a breeze and the longer pile side is perfect for the final wipe or for use with
detailing sprays.

The silk borders make this towel completely safe and eliminate any chance of
scratching. Rounded edges reduce any chance of fraying.

Made of 75/25 Polyester/Polymide blend. Size: 40x40cm / 16x16 inches.

Colour: White with Red silk edging. 1x towel per pack.

SP Notes:
Great quality long lasting microfibre towels. The same used by many of the
big US brands such as Poorboys (their 'DMT' Towel), these towels are soft on
your paint but without sacrificing feel or ultimate quality!

What Am I Testing it On?

My first test is on my kitchen windows

What Do I Think of it?

I received two of these cloths within a Christmas Prize Draw parcel and I've
been saving them for the vast expanse of my kitchen windows to give them a
really good test. Prior to receipt of these towels I've been a tad ambivalent
about MF cloths. To me they're just another type of duster.

Now, I've been made to think again. Not to the extent where I'd only use the
el cheapo MF cloths on wheels, but having some quality cloths for some
cleaning jobs does tend to make doing them easier. With my limited motor
function and quite dodgy balance when perched on a step ladder, it helps to
be able to rely upon the cloth to do its intended job.

I'll report again later when I have a go at wax removal.

Here's a picture to try and show the difference twixt the two pile depths...

http://s5.postimg.cc/oo3m16v5j/spqdcloth2.jpg

Testing the Cloth with SP Show Detailer

One of the "potions" that came with my Xmas prize was a bottle of Serious
Performance Show Detailer and I had intended to add my twopen'th to that
thread. However, as my reviewer permissions haven't been extended that far,
I'm going to combine the two products into this one review, as I explore the
uses for this cloth.

First off - the SP Show Detailer.

In other official reviews two people had applied two coats of this Quick
Detailer and were quite wowed by the result. Having read their reviews before I
tried the product, it was clear that it had impressed some experienced people!
Having said that, anyone who's read my write-up on QD's will know that it'll
be quite a product that will tear me away from Finish Kare #425 as my "go to" QD.

Up to now, I've mostly used the plush pile MF cloths, using the surplus QD
from the horizontal panels to do the verticals. However, on this occasion
I was using the SP Ultra Buffing Towel, so it was time to keep a close eye on
events. I'd only given the car an protective just 2 days before, so there was
no reason to think the car needed a wash - how wrong could I be?

http://s5.postimg.cc/lowpe2lo7/spqdcloth.jpg
Here's the proof!

The SP Show Detailer is a similar garish pink to FK#425 but it appears to
have a creamier (cloudier?) consistency rather than a watery one. What was
initially very evident was that there's certainly no need to crop-spray the
surface, like you're doing a rinseless wash. I used the deeper pile side of the
SP cloth and it was very pleasing to see how far I could go without feeling wary.

I'm always concerned about inflicting swirls with dry MF cloths, especially
when the cleanliness of the surface is untested! When I tentatively turned the
cloth over for the first time, I was startled - the picture shows what was
removed from just half the roof. My experience with bucketless washing and
rotating my hand as I dragged the cloth really came into its own here.

So, there's no question of the Show Detailer's ability to clean. I could have
left it at that, the surface was perfectly clean and very slick! Once I'd done
both sides of the roof, both front wings and the bonnet, I decided, as time
was running short, that I'd go round once again. Now that I knew that the
surface was clean, my aim was to just work the product until it dried.

By the time I reached the bonnet, the temperature was starting to drop and
obtaining a completely smear free finish was getting a little difficult. So, my
conclusion here is that this is not a cold weather product - applying it temps
below 12degC may not be worthwhile. Nevertheless, the slickness from the
second coat had to be felt to be believed, so I'm not surprised that other
reviewers were blown away.

http://s5.postimg.cc/4n00eu1br/spqdbonnet.jpg
A before and after comparison over the bonnet. It doesn't even
look dusty in the top picture, does it?.

Secondly, the Ultra Buffing Towel

Compared to the plush MF towels that I usually employ for this task, the first
thing of note was how much easier it is to fold them _and_ to hold the fold in
place. This is probably the first time I've used a white towel in this way and
the dirt that came off was startling!

However, being able to easily manipulate the cloth from one side to another,
again holding the integrity of the fold, made this job easy. Overall, the quality
of the towel and its ability to do the task make my initial comments about
their cost border on being churlish. Even though I'm still quite ambivalent
about "posh dusters", there's no doubt that these cloths could win anyone over
with their sheer quality!

Wax Removal

Now I come to report back on this aspect. I have to admit that it's personally
a step too far. The Chemical Guys 50/50 wax is so easy to remove that it wasn't
long before I dug out one of my favoured plush blue towels for this task. For
things like window cleaning and QD application the SP towels come into their own
and here they will be heavily used for these tasks.

Pros

The short pile one side, deeper pile on the other definitely helps with cleaning.
For my windows I used Greased Lightning Showroom Shine and I used the
deeper pile to do the cleaning, and buffed with shorter side. That way, the
power of the fibres was put to best use. That might seem counter intuitive,
but the deeper pile is not too long to limit its cleaning ability. Normally, I'd
probably only use the deeper side for applying Wipe-On/Walk-Away QDs.

It's smaller size makes the cloth easier to fold and hold for this job than the
really deep pile MF cloths. There was absolutely no "cottoning" from the cloths
- they were used straight from the bag.

Cons

Possibly the price.

Conclusions

These are clearly positive additions to SP's "Utra" range of products.

Despite my reservations about the price, these are quality pieces of kit with
a lovely red satin or silk border. They look and feel like they will last for ages,
so maybe I'm being a tad mean. Having just washed them, with a spirit vinegar
final rinse, they have come out wonderfully soft. Go on, spoil yourself... :)

Where Do I Buy It?

Priced at £3.49 per cloth, they're available from Serious Performance

The S.P. Show Detailer is now onto Version 3 and will be the subject of its own
review.

Acknowledgements

My thanks to Alex for including these cloths in his goodies box.

Regards,
Steve